Agricultural Management Assistance Applications Accepted

Morgantown, WV—Application ranking dates have been extended until May 13th for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Agricultural Management Assistance Program (AMA). “The AMA Program is a voluntary conservation program for agricultural farmers and producers that provides cost-share payments for selected conservation practices,” said West Virginia State Conservationist Ronald L. Hilliard. “Last year, NRCS used AMA funds to provide $660,206 in cost-share assistance to 121 projects on West Virginia farms.” Conservation practices included:

• An agrichemical handling facility
• Critical area plantings
• Existing woodland harvest road, trail, and landing reclamation
• Sustainable organic and truck crop farming
• Manure transfer and nutrient management

All Farm Bill programs may be applied for at any time but they have different ranking closing dates. Applications received May 13 are held until the next round.

AMA is available in only 15 states, including West Virginia, where participation in the Federal Crop Insurance Program is historically low. AMA helps producers adopt conservation practices and investment strategies that will reduce or mitigate risks to their agricultural enterprises.

A conservation plan is required for the area covered in the application and becomes the basis for developing the AMA contract. NRCS will work with the landowner to develop a conservation plan. Landowners must agree to maintain cost-shared practices for the life of the practice. Contracts are for three to ten years.

For more information, please contact your local USDA Service Center, listed in the telephone book under U.S. Department of Agriculture, or your local conservation district. Information also is available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.wv.nrcs.usda.gov/
 

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